Discriminatory Anti-LGBT Adoption Bill Advances to Full Senate, LGBTQ Lobby Day March 1st!

SB 375, an anti-LGBT “License to Discriminate” bill Georgia Equality legislative issuesthat would allow taxpayer-funded adoption agencies to turn away same-sex couples, advanced out of the Senate Judiciary Committee earlier this morning. The bill could come before the full Senate as early as tomorrow.

“There are no winners with SB 375,” said Jeff Graham, Georgia Equality’s Executive Director. “This bill does not help the thousands of young people in our state’s adoption and foster care system. It does not help loving parents who are looking to open their homes to children in need, either through fostering or adoption. It does not help our state’s economic image – particularly at this crucial juncture in our bid to bring up to 50,000 new and high-paying jobs to our state through Amazon. There are only losers with this bill: children denied permanent and loving homes, and potential parents coldly turned away simply because of who they are.” Continue reading



Action Alert: Call for a hearing on Hate Crimes!

We’re excited about the possibility of seeing real progress on passing hate crime legislation in Georgia this year, but we need your help now!

Will you take 3 minutes today to make 3 phone calls? Three important Committee Chairs need to hear from you today on why we need a hearing on hate crimes as soon as possible.

Call now:

Chairman Wendell Willard, House Judiciary Committee,404.656.5125email hidden; JavaScript is required

Chairman Rich Golick, House Non-Civil Judiciary Committee, 404.656.5943email hidden; JavaScript is required

Chairman Jesse Stone, Senate Judiciary Committee, 404.463.1314email hidden; JavaScript is required

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Welcome GE’s newest staff member: HIV Policy Field Organizer Eric Paulk

Eric Paulk is the HIV Policy Field Organizer at Georgia Equality. In this role, he manages statewide advocacy and policy related to HIV. Prior to coming to Georgia Equality, Eric served as the Tyron Garner Fellow at Lambda Legal, the oldest and largest organization dedicated to advancing the civil rights of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transgender people and individuals living with HIV. There, Paulk’s work focused on the intersections of race, class, and sexuality with an emphasis on HIV and the law. Recognized as an emerging leader and passionate advocate for civil rights, Eric has spoken at leading law schools, and national advocacy conferences on HIV criminal reform, the impact of the school-to-prison pipeline on black queer youth, and the intersectionality of race, poverty, HIV, and LGBTQ issues. He serves on the Board of the Atlanta Harm Reduction Coalition and is the former board chair of GLSEN New York City. Paulk is also a 2017 Victory Empowerment Fellow. He is a graduate of Pace University Law School, and received his bachelor’s degree in Business from Morehouse College. Eric is most excited about working with our Youth HIV Policy Advisors and helping to empower them to be advocates and advance policy.

To reach Eric, email email hidden; JavaScript is required


we still have work ahead of us

Friend,

Over the last few weeks, you’ve heard Amy and Melanie, Kenyatta, Joseph and Steph, and Glen Paul talk about Georgia Equality’s work over the past year. I hope you had a chance to read what they had to say. After all, you and your support are the reasons why Georgia Equality has been so successful over the past year and have contributed to our success over the past several years.

However, despite those successes, we still have work ahead of us.

In January, legislators will return to the State Capitol, and there are already threats that we will again have to fight against efforts to write anti-LGBTQ discrimination into law. Continue reading